 | |
| Founder | Rabbi Chaim Mintz |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Lakewood, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Website | oorah.org |
Oorah Kiruv Rechokim, Inc (Hebrew: עורה קירבו רחוקים; "awaken and bring in those who are far"), better known as Oorah is an incorporated Orthodox Jewish outreach (kiruv) organization, founded in 1980 "with the goal of awakening Jewish children and their families to their heritage."[1] It is a United States-based 501(C)3 non-profit organization.[2]
Oorah, Inc. was founded by Rabbi Chaim Mintz and is based in Lakewood. Day-to-day operations are overseen by his son, Rabbi Eliyohu Mintz of New Jersey.[3][4][5]
Oorah operates and/or funds 49 individual programs that target Jewish outreach (Kiruv) and learning, family support, personal growth, and relationship counseling. It promotes family support and development.[6][7] It runs summer camps for boys and girls, Jewish holiday enrichment, early, primary, and secondary educational support and enrichment, as examples. One of their main programs involves an anthropomorphic $5 bill, named Fiveish, who is characterised by positive Jewish behaviours.
In the summer of 2007, 31 undocumented workers doing work for a subcontractor at Oorah's summer camp were arrested in a raid by ICE and local law enforcement.[8] Camp director Eliyohu Mintz stated that the organization was not aware that the workers lacked employment authorization.[9]
In September 2010, a website for some of Oorah's camps was hacked.[10]
